BIG UPDATE COMING FOLKS..... Sorry folks. We've been a) enjoying ourselves, b) we've not had good internet connections, and c)we forgot about the blog. Apologies if your life has been on hold in the meantime. OK it's Saturday morning and we've got 4 days of stories to catch up on. Pictures will have to wait until we get a stronger 3G signal.
Blog uplate Saturday August 16
The last time we posted we were just leaving Farsund on Tuesday afternoon. Martin said we would try and make Stavanger in about 30 hrs. It was going to be quite rough to start with then the winds would back westerly and it calm down (a bit). well we all know how accurate Martin is with his briefings and pedictions.
First up was Blue Watch. Very strong southerly winds and rough seas. After we finished motoring out of the sound we had the sails up and were getting 5-6 knts. Rain, heavy swell over the gunwales and we were all wet through within the first hour. But the waves were very big from the stern so it made for a very uncomfortable motion. We had all taken sea sickness pills in preparation. At about 5pm the clew on the main sail snapped with a huge explosive bang and the sail was flapping. All hands! Quick as a flash Frianco and Niki were on the case. Steered into wind and lowered the gaff, tied up the thrashing canvas and set about a repair. The other watches were happily tucked up in their bunks resting ahead of their shifts - except Nick, Mary, Maria and Harvey who were happy to help Blue Watch. Two hours later and the repair was done. Blue watch stayed to reset the sails as the others tucked in - sort of - to another tasty meal from Jessica's magical hands. Handover to a decidedly green looking Red Watch at 8pm. Blue watch famished troughed into their food like they hadn't eaten for days despite tha heaving and pitching ship.
Overnight there was no respite. Those trying to sleep had to have their lee cloths up and be wedged in their bunks. The ship was really rolling now. Doors crashing, books flying, things falling out of cupboards. A real mess. But we were making great speed, some 8-9 knts, which ironically was too fast. We would arrive in Stavanger too early so Frianco had to steer a slower course to buy time. the graveyard shift at 4am saw Blue Watch have to carry out 4 jibes and put up and take down the topsail. By 8am we were rounding the Kvitsoy lighthouse and heading into the Stavanger Sound.
We berthed in the main Vagen area of central Stavanger at about 11am alongside two massive 10-storey high super-cruise liners. Lines and lines of cruise tourists filling up the tour buses, but mostly taking pictures of us!
Wednesday 13th - Day 1 in Stavanger - museums
After a quick briefing most of us headed out into the old town to explore. And that's when the reverse motion sickness kicked in. Stationary on terra firma after 12 hours of heaving and rolling and our brains were telling us we were still moving. Wierd. Lovley little old town of white weatherboard cottages and cobbled lanes. Oh yeah and thousands of cruiser tourists. The commercial district was equally pretty. After lunch back on the boat we headed out again: venues bagged included the oil museum, the sardine canning factory museaum, the Koncerthall, the fire watch tower, the harbour museum, and the shops! A beautiful sunny warm evening and we're all on deck for G&Ts/Fizz. Pity the massive MSC liner Orchestre backs in to bock our view. Evening briefing: early start tomorrow as Martin has secured us the "value" tour to pulpit rock. later Andy meets up with a friend Sally from 30 years ago who now lives in Norway. She is a dinner guest for the evening.
Thursday 14th - Day 2 in Stavanger - trip to Pulpit Rock.
Early breakfast and off through the still quiet town at 7.30am to the regular 40 minute ferry to Tau. Only a handful of plucky tourists on board. Short bus ride to the Priekestollen car park and we're off! Both Jessica and "crazy puppy" Eddie (wannn-too) Cabin Boy are with us. We think they have lunch. The weather is perfect, sunny, breezy not too hot. It's a 3.8km 300m vertical hike to the rock, and we are not alone! Even though we're ahead of the masses, there are plenty of people on the trail. We pass two girls sitting on a rock tally counting - by 10.30am there's already 150 up front. We pass through lovely glades and rocky tarns on the way up. At 2.4km we catch our first sight of the Lisjefjord stretching away up north
Pulpit Rock - a sheer drop of rectangular grey mass dropping into the fiord like a viking axe. Nearly everyone is drawn to the edge crawling forward on their stomachs to peer over, or more nonchalently sit swinging their legs over the side. Lots of people are gambling with their safety to take selfies. I wonder what it would feel like if someone does fall off! There's a tourist helicopter overhead and tour boats down below but we feel like the real thing.
After a couple of hours we set off back down, and stop en route for lunch which luckily Jessica, our cook, has carried on her back. The group settles down by a lake and we have some wine and quiche, salad, meats etc. Eddy, cabin boy, goes off rock climbing so as punishment his rucksac is filled with rocks for the journey down. We have to dissipate his energy somehow! Off again and the rain starts which makes the clamber down a little slippy but we all get back to base safe and sound to wait for the bus. First casualty of the trip is Richard who gets a wasp brushed into his face by someone nearby and is robustly stung on the bridge of his nose. Fortunately Marion has a tube of bite cream in the depths of her rucksac and and comes to the rescue. The journey back to Stavanger goes without incident, and develops into a beautiful sunny evening spent on deck with admiring glances from passers by. A bottle of bubbly is cracked open to celebrate the exam results of two of our absent teenagers and excited phone calls are made.
At 1800 it's time for the ship to move again as Martin has to release the berth for another vessel. We set sail north-westwards for a few hours before dropping anchor in a secluded bay and having our evening meal. Jana one of our intrepid crew suggests a swim off the boat, but the rest of us whimp out at plunging into the inky black water and declare we'll do it in the morning. Eddy not wanting to be upstaged decided to rig a makeshift swing from which he can perform like a circus sealion in front of his audience. We all think he is daft - but not as daft as Dave who lets him use his GoPro to video the whole thing!
.......Sinderella, the village pantomine is put on for entertainment......
Friday 15th August
Morning comes, the rope ladder is put over the side and three of us take the plunge. Wow it takes your breath away! Eddy is swinging off the ropes again and Jana is doing laps round the ship. Everyone else comes on deck to watch before breakfast. All aboard and we set sail again. We're aiming to get beyone Haugersund on the way to the fiords but the winds are not being kind to us, yet again a fierce headwind so we have to motor. We reach another bay near xxxxx some 16km south of Haugersund by mid afternoon before dropping both anchors. Janna competently crews the dinghy and ferries us ashore to explore the little marina/village. No village to be found but we walk round the headlands and through a wood. A small group decide to get a taxi to Haugersund and a have a fish meal out. The rest of us eat stuffed cabbage - actually delicious. Big news - a mackerel is caught by our Captain Martin in this bay within seconds of casting his line, much to the annoyance of Mandy who has a only caught a duck so far.. First fish of the voyage - where are they all? Mandy, Raynee and Nick persevere with their lines...
Scrabble, Canasta, and Sequences keep everyone entertained during the evening along with a very scary movie - Perfect Storm!
At the evening briefing Martin says we will leave at 4am. No need for watches. We should get a long way into Hardangerfjord.
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